Senior Abuse Awareness and Prevention

Senior Abuse (or elder abuse, or abuse of older persons) is any action or inaction which endangers the health or well-being of an older individual.

It is believed that at least between 4% and 10% of older adults experience abuse. This rate is known to be higher in certain settings.

Abuse can happen to anyone... regardless of age, gender, living arrangements, physical or mental health or ability, sexual orientation, financial status, education, or culture.

Every situation of abuse is unique... there is no one single response to senior abuse.

Raising awareness is key to addressing senior abuse. It is a very complex and difficult issue, but we must discuss it openly and work towards creating an environment where it can be recognized and addressed.

Our goal is to promote the health and well-being of older Nova Scotians through preventing and increasing awareness of abuse.

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This website contains a wide range of information on the issue of senior abuse and outlines what the Department and some of our partners are doing to address it.

We urge you to become involved in your communities to challenge the attitudes and behaviours that allow abuse to occur and to work together to shed light on this very real social problem.

Call the Senior Abuse Line for information or to talk about a situation of abuse. Your call will be kept confidential.

Abuse may be a crime and fall under the Criminal Code. Call your local police station for information or to report abuse. If the situation is an emergency or if it could be dangerous, call 911.

If you know of a senior in need of protection, call Adult Protection Services at the Department of Health. Adult Protection workers can intervene and offer services to help those in need of protection.

Report known or suspected cases of abuse in a licensed health facility (such as a nursing home, residential care facility, or hospital) to the Protection of Persons in Care office at the Department of Health.

Contact Information

For general inquiries related to senior abuse or to talk about a situation of abuse, call the toll-free Senior Abuse Line at 1-877-833-3377. You can also e-mail stopelderabuse@gov.ns.ca